Valuable Tips for Conducting User Research No One really Talks About

Whether we conduct user research for the first time or numerous times, there are small details you as the user researcher/designer need to do in order to provide a smooth and thoughtful usability session. Sometimes we go in without enough context or let ourselves become too focused on conducting a study that we forget about the most important aspect of it all; the users who are apart of our study, the people who have thoughts and feelings just like we do.

There are small components which go into conducting a great usability study and though they may not be as meaningful to you, they speak volumes for the user who is being interviewed and how they feel.

Designers need to be thoughtful about every step of the design process, including conducting good research.

Because we are “human-centered” (or should be), It is our job to make our users feel comfortable and have them know what they will be expecting in a usability study. If we don’t prime our users before bombarding them with questions, it can lead to insights that aren’t related to the study itself but instead a confused user not knowing what to do or answer the questions.

Always ask if it is okay to film/record

Before beginning an usability session, the one question that most junior designers should ask, but don’t is “Is it okay to film and record you?”

Unless your participant signed a consent form to be filmed, you might think, why is this question so important? It’s because when you film or record someone without their permission, you are essentially evading their privacy and simply put, it’s illegal and unethical. As design researchers, our job is to be ethical and honest when we conduct interviews. After all, our calling should be to design emphatic and useful experiences for people. This means we need to understand people and have a meaningful usability study/interview with them to gain their trust.